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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28331658">A Midnight Firefly Hunt</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/enthuzimuzzy/pseuds/enthuzimuzzy'>enthuzimuzzy</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Captain America (Movies), Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Fluff, How is that not a tag im sorry what, M/M, Not historically accurate im sure, Post-Serum Steve Rogers, Steve Rogers is a Drama Queen</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 18:20:58</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,473</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28331658</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/enthuzimuzzy/pseuds/enthuzimuzzy</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>“C’mon - Steve, Stevie, wake up.”</p><p>Steve cracked open an eye to see Bucky hovering over him in an undershirt and pants, grinning softly. “What it is?”</p><p>“Fireflies, Stevie! Fireflies.”</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>36</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>A Midnight Firefly Hunt</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/greyhavensking/gifts">greyhavensking</a>.</li>



    </ul><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This was written for the lovely greyhavensking for the Stucky Secret Santa! Yes, it is still technically the 25th where I live, I swear!</p><p>I did not message you, as I couldn't do it anonymously and didn't want to ruin the surprise, so don't worry - yes you had a secret Santa after all!! :) I had a lot of fun with your prompt of "soft Stucky" and I hope you had a very merry Christmas and happy holidays!</p><p>Much love, Rosie.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Bucky pressed a kiss to Steve’s lips softly as they sprawled out together on their bed, back in the Brooklyn apartment. Steve studied the other’s face.</p><p>He looked young. Young and naive - or at least as naive as he had ever been - and untouched by the type of despair he would only learn years later.</p><p>“What’s wrong?” Bucky asked, and Steve knew that his unhappy nostalgia did not go unnoticed.</p><p>“Nothin’, Buck. Absolutely fucking nothing.” Steve kissed him again, but Bucky pulled away with a huff that Steve could see right through.</p><p>“I swear, you curse more than I do, you degenerate. Here we are, having a nice fucking moment and you decide to -”</p><p>“Yeah, yeah, you’re the romantic in this relationship, huh?”</p><p>“You bet your scrawny ass I am.” Steve laughed softly. He knew that usually he would have said something to defend himself against that “scrawny” comment, but he truly didn’t care one bit right now.</p><p>“You love this scrawny ass,” is what he said instead.</p><p>“You know it, baby.” Bucky winked and Steve smiled.</p><p>Steve leaned back in, a hand on Bucky’s face as the pair kissed gently, as though they had all the time in the world. And, honestly, they did. At least until the dream ended.</p><p>Steve woke up suddenly as someone gently shook his shoulder. Without a conscious decision, he declined to open his eyes, content to stay in his own dream world far away from reality. It was irresponsible, he knew, but at that moment, he couldn’t care less. He missed that damn Brooklyn apartment, he missed the before times - he missed being able to lie in bed all night, knowing Bucky was beside him. Fuck.</p><p>“C’mon - Steve, Stevie, wake up.”</p><p>Steve cracked open an eye to see Bucky hovering over him in an undershirt and pants, grinning softly. “What it is?”</p><p>“Fireflies, Stevie! Fireflies.” Bucky stepped back, removing his arm, and Steve briefly mourned the loss, feeling reminiscent, before sitting up.</p><p>“Fireflies?”</p><p>“Yeah. Or, I mean, I think they call them ‘glow worms’ or something over here, but yeah. Fireflies.”</p><p>Steve ran a hand over his face. “Bucky, come on. Why do you want to see them so badly?”</p><p>“What, like we saw them all the time in the city?”</p><p>Steve tried a different tactic. “It’s the middle of the night.”</p><p>“Well, duh.” Bucky tugged him onto his feet. “That’s when they come out.”</p><p>Steve huffed out a laugh. “Right, right. Fireflies. Okay, then, if you think this is so incredibly important - enough to wake me up…”</p><p>Bucky pecked Steve on the lips, “Shut up it’s gonna be romantic as fuck.”</p><p>“Whatever you say.”</p><p>“Just trust me.”</p><p>“Well, then, what are we waiting for?” Steve asked with the small smile he never seemed to shake around Bucky in these small stolen moments, gesturing for him to lead the way. Bucky took his hand and pulled him into the night.</p><p>They left Steve’s tent, sneaking silently around the others. It was the night before they left France for a mission up north and the guys were sleeping soundly, evidenced by the unusually quiet night, broken only by Dum Dum‘s snores. There was a reason he was on the outskirts of their little makeshift camp. God only knew how he didn’t wake himself up with that racket - let alone everyone else.</p><p>It quickly became obvious that Bucky knew where they were going and it wasn’t long before they left their tents behind and made it to a clearing that was positively glowing with the light of dozens of fireflies.</p><p>Steve felt his breath catch.</p><p>Sometimes it was hard to remember how beautiful the world could be, in the midst of a bloody, messy war. And then Bucky would remind him.</p><p>And jeez - wasn’t that just positively sappy? Good thing Bucky couldn’t read minds - that Steve knew of - so he wouldn’t be able to tease him about it for the next ten years.</p><p>The pair silently moved forward into the clearing until they were surrounded by the bugs.</p><p>“It’s a shame we don’t have any jars to catch them,” Steve said.</p><p>“But then we’d have to set ‘em free anyway.”</p><p>“Yeah, but it’s the act of doing it, Bucky. Running around like little kids, trying to snag a few before letting them go. I miss that.”</p><p>“Miss what? Being kids?”</p><p>“Yeah - the freedom that came with that, the lack of responsibility.”</p><p>Bucky looked right at him and laughed. “Are we talking about the same childhood here? You were working since you were able.”</p><p>Steve frowned. “I was always sick all the time.”</p><p>“And your only company was this lousy nut.”</p><p>“Hey - that one wasn’t so bad.”</p><p>There was a moment of silence before Steve spoke again.</p><p>“You know, I had a dream tonight. About that. Our childhood or teenagerhood or whatever.”</p><p>“What happened?” Bucky asked.</p><p>Steve looked out at the clearing, “We were in bed.”</p><p>“Oh-ho, so it was <em> that </em> kinda dream.”</p><p>He rolled his eyes. “No, it was not <em> that </em> kind of dream. Now would you shut it and listen? I’m tryin’ to say something here.” Bucky raised his hands in surrender and kept quiet. “Anyway, we’re in bed, and I’m just looking at you. And I’m happy. I’m so fucking happy in this stupid dream and then I just wake up. And you’re gone. But you’re right in front of me. You know? Like, I was spending all of this energy thinking about y’know “the good old days” or something and honestly, those good old days kinda sucked.” Bucky snorted. “Right? It was so stupid. You always had to take care of me, we were both always working - I almost fucking died! And not from just anything - from <em> pneumonia </em>. Something that my body now would burn through like it was nothing. Honestly, having you was the only good damn thing that happened back then. So, yeah. I just wanted to say that. I don’t know. I guess I just didn’t see - honestly - the best thing to ever happen to me right in front of me, literally shaking me awake.”</p><p>A beat passed. Steve began to shrink back, embarrassed at both his honesty and his delivery.</p><p>“That was one hell of a monologue, Stevie.” Bucky grinned at him.</p><p>“Shuddup.” Steve flushed. And then flushed at the fact that he was flushing. It used to be a common occurrence, but after Erskine, his blush became less frequent. And Bucky knew that and therefore knew that he was beyond embarrassed, so Steve waited for the teasing to begin.</p><p>Instead, Bucky looked around quickly then pulled him in for a quick kiss. Relief washed over Steve. Bucky smiled. “Sap,” he whispered against the other’s lips, before stepping back.</p><p>Bucky strolled a little further into the glow, looking around. “You ever see ‘em like this?”</p><p>“Never this many, and never right in the city. Imagine what Brooklyn would look like, all lit up like this.”</p><p>Bucky laughed fondly by his side. “Brooklyn is always lit up, Steve, just not with bugs.”</p><p>“Right, right. Still. It’s beautiful.” Steve looked to his right to see Bucky looking at him. “What is it?”</p><p>“So are you, doll.”</p><p>Steve laughed. “Now, now, don’t go pulling out all your favorite lines for little old me. You already pulled this one.”</p><p>“Ain’t a line.”</p><p>“Right.”</p><p>Bucky sighed, a hand coming up to run through his hair. “You know how hard these <em> serious </em> moments are, Stevie. I’m trying to be honest here, too. You’re fucking gorgeous and you had better know it.”</p><p>Steve had to look away. That was too much. “Yeah, well, Erskine sure did a good job.”</p><p>“Don’t - gah - Steve. Stevie. Baby. You were beautiful before the serum and you’re beautiful after. Only difference is now I don’t have to worry about crushing you if I roll over in my sleep.”</p><p>“Yeah?”</p><p>“Yeah.” Bucky slung an arm around Steve’s shoulders. “Now shuddup and let me enjoy the first moment of peace we’ve gotten in months.”</p><p>Steve couldn’t say how long they spent in the clearing, but somehow they ended up on the ground, Bucky’s head in his lap, Steve’s hand in his hair. It was nice, calm. Maybe Steve had been caught up in the past, but he knew he wasn’t anymore. He was fully present, and he was, Steve realized with a bit of a shock, happy.</p><p>“I love you, you know,” Bucky murmured, staring up at the sky.</p><p>Steve smiled fully. “Yeah, I know.”</p><p>“Well?” Bucky looked at Steve expectantly after a moment had passed.</p><p>“Well, what?”</p><p>Bucky just looked at him.</p><p>“Yeah, yeah,” Steve gave in, “You know I love you, too.”</p><p>“Much better, ya little punk.”</p><p>Steve tousled Bucky’s hair. “Jerk.”</p><p>“Hey - you watch that now, schnookums.”</p><p>“I’m so terribly sorry, darling.”</p><p>“Babycakes.”</p><p>“Honeybuns.”</p><p>“Angel boy.”</p><p>“I love you.”</p><p>“I know.”</p><p>“Bucky!”</p>
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